Equinox Gold Corp. (NYSEAMERICAN:EQX) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Equinox Gold Corp. (NYSEAMERICAN:EQX) has received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the eight analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $17.00.

A number of brokerages recently commented on EQX. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised Equinox Gold from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Equinox Gold in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Zacks Research cut Equinox Gold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Equinox Gold in a research note on Monday, January 26th.

Institutional Trading of Equinox Gold

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EQX. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Equinox Gold by 91.3% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 96,024,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,077,394,000 after buying an additional 45,820,861 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd acquired a new stake in Equinox Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $332,888,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Equinox Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $141,388,000. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in Equinox Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $75,290,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in Equinox Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,875,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.85% of the company’s stock.

Equinox Gold Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of EQX opened at $14.49 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.11 and a beta of 1.21. Equinox Gold has a one year low of $5.61 and a one year high of $18.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $14.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.35.

Equinox Gold (NYSEAMERICAN:EQX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $861.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $896.94 million. Equinox Gold had a net margin of 21.72% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 224.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.08) EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Equinox Gold will post 1.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equinox Gold Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.015 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $0.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Equinox Gold’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.11%.

Key Stories Impacting Equinox Gold

Here are the key news stories impacting Equinox Gold this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The deal would combine Equinox and Orla into a larger gold producer with expected annual output of about 1.1 million ounces and a growth path toward 1.9 million ounces, which could improve scale and long-term production visibility. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The transaction could create Canada’s second-largest gold producer and a major North American gold platform, which may appeal to investors looking for greater size, liquidity, and operational diversity. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Equinox has also recently posted solid operating results, reporting strong gold production and staying on track for full-year guidance, which supports the investment case even as attention shifts to the merger. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Because the acquisition is mostly stock-funded, shareholders may be concerned about dilution and execution risk as Equinox absorbs a large new asset base and works to realize the promised synergies. Article Title

About Equinox Gold

Equinox Gold Corp is a Canadian gold mining company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company focuses on the acquisition, development, and operation of gold properties, with an emphasis on open-pit heap leach mining. Since its inception, Equinox Gold has pursued a strategy of combining assets in established jurisdictions to build a diversified portfolio that balances production and growth, while maintaining rigorous safety and environmental standards.

Equinox Gold’s operating portfolio spans three countries.